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TEXAS just passed a law that turns Big Tech giants Apple and Google into bouncers at the gates of the internet. Under SB 2420, starting 2026, app stores must verify the age of every user. Want to download a weather app? You’ll need to show ID. And if you’re under 18, you can’t install anything without a parent’s permission. This isn’t about “protecting children.” Porn apps are already banned in the app stores. This is about creating a mass surveillance system that erases anonymity, chills speech, and forces Texans to hand over their real identities to access digital life. The state tells developers to “delete the data.” But delete when? And trust who? Developers? Apple? Google? You’re betting your privacy on a handshake. Meanwhile, Apple and Google are forced to collect and store troves of sensitive info from every user, just to comply. For Texans, from next year, everything you say on a social media app can be tied to your real-world identity. And if you think this ends in Texas, think again. Utah passed a similar law. Congress is eyeing one, too. The war on online anonymity is here. image

Replies (49)

Under16 year old Australian children can have no access to social media sites in 2026. Even if they have parent permission. Passed in legislation without debate, last year. It will likely mean that every Australian will need to verify age. They'll probably use that "voluntary" Digital ID legislation that they passed around the same time (sneakily). This stuff is happening all over the globe. 😡🤨🧡
↩ replying to npub16v8g...cyzh
Yeah so parents need tools to be able to do it because parents don’t own the internet. Usual non developer parents can’t just create other gateways to safeguard their kids online…it’s a balance between safeguarding and giving them autonomy if they’re old enough but they can still be groomed online etc or have issues using social media which could even lead to suicide. There is an infinite number of possible situations for children to be unsafe online
🛡️
Texas can pass deez nuts. Thankful for Nostr.
User's avatar npub1ukq5...s4c6
TEXAS just passed a law that turns Big Tech giants Apple and Google into bouncers at the gates of the internet. Under SB 2420, starting 2026, app stores must verify the age of every user. Want to download a weather app? You’ll need to show ID. And if you’re under 18, you can’t install anything without a parent’s permission. This isn’t about “protecting children.” Porn apps are already banned in the app stores. This is about creating a mass surveillance system that erases anonymity, chills speech, and forces Texans to hand over their real identities to access digital life. The state tells developers to “delete the data.” But delete when? And trust who? Developers? Apple? Google? You’re betting your privacy on a handshake. Meanwhile, Apple and Google are forced to collect and store troves of sensitive info from every user, just to comply. For Texans, from next year, everything you say on a social media app can be tied to your real-world identity. And if you think this ends in Texas, think again. Utah passed a similar law. Congress is eyeing one, too. The war on online anonymity is here. image
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I come from Germany in the European Union. Politicians are trying to install mass surveillance here. The internet is censored and if you say the wrong thing, you have to expect a special unit and a house search at six in the morning. Europe and especially Germany are on the way to China, the role model for many politicians, they love dictatorship.
on the other hand, the app stores have never been about "the internet", have never been free, and will always be a walled garden.
User's avatar npub1ukq5...s4c6
TEXAS just passed a law that turns Big Tech giants Apple and Google into bouncers at the gates of the internet. Under SB 2420, starting 2026, app stores must verify the age of every user. Want to download a weather app? You’ll need to show ID. And if you’re under 18, you can’t install anything without a parent’s permission. This isn’t about “protecting children.” Porn apps are already banned in the app stores. This is about creating a mass surveillance system that erases anonymity, chills speech, and forces Texans to hand over their real identities to access digital life. The state tells developers to “delete the data.” But delete when? And trust who? Developers? Apple? Google? You’re betting your privacy on a handshake. Meanwhile, Apple and Google are forced to collect and store troves of sensitive info from every user, just to comply. For Texans, from next year, everything you say on a social media app can be tied to your real-world identity. And if you think this ends in Texas, think again. Utah passed a similar law. Congress is eyeing one, too. The war on online anonymity is here. image
View quoted note →